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Google: Docs Isn't Getting a Music Player Anytime Soon

The rumors about Google Docs getting a music player, playlists and a preview pane are just that, according to one of the execs in charge of Docs.

Earlier this week, Google Operating System blog, which is not affiliated with Google, dug through the Google Docs source code and found several references to features not currently in Docs. This includes references to a preview pane, a media player, playlists and collections, a potential feature to organize multiple folders.

Don't expect the imminent launch of a music player though, says Jonathan Rochelle, director of product management for Google Docs. I just had breakfast with Rochelle and directly asked him about the Google Docs music player rumors. He told me that his team has "no goal for a music player." Instead, it's a case of people looking too deeply into the code. "It's hard to find why it's even there," he added.

Essentially, Google's programming teams are always testing different ideas and products, adding and subtracting them from the code all the time. And as is true with many technical teams, Google's engineers also like to have a little fun and place random things into the code, even if they're not coming to market anytime soon. The code references could indeed be for upcoming products, but they're just as likely referring to legacy products or absolutely nothing.

Rochelle doesn't discount the possibility of a music player though, even saying that it's a good idea. However, don't expect Google Docs to become an iTunes replacement anytime soon. Rochelle says that his team is very focused on building a more powerful version of offline Google Docs based on HTML5.

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